Social protection
Religion, politics and governance in Pakistan
Can religion be a driver for change in pro-poor policy in Pakistan?
Authors:
M. Waseem; M. Mufti; Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
Publisher:
International Development Department, University of Birmingham, 2009
This paper examines the relationships between Muslim organisations and government in Pakistan. The paper explores the influence of religion on development policy formulation and public administration. In particular, the paper tries to investigate whether religion can play the role of a driver for change in pro-poor policy and practice.
The paper notes that politics and governance in Pakistan are heavily influenced by the latent force of the Islamic establishment-especially in its organisational setting-both in the government and in the opposition. Furthermore, the paper finds that:
- the state has typically used Islam as a source of legitimacy in the absence of, or in combination with, a mass mandate
- in so doing, it has played on to the turf of Islamic groups by seeking to control the production and spread of the religious message
- however, beyond this instrumental use of Islam, it is a constant, pervasive and intense force that includes, but at the same time transcends, the manipulations of the ruling elite
- indeed, the mullahs have relied on the supreme legitimising potential of religion to hold the state to its promise to establish Islamic laws
- notably, when religious parties were in power, they adjusted to the prevalent legal-institutional framework of authority in order to survive in office
- similarly, they established working relationships with the central government and donors, and with provincial government bureaucrats
- however, they adopted a cautious stance on several issues on which its pre-election position was hard-line
- nevertheless, they achieved only modest improvements in infrastructure and provision of education and healthcare
Given these points, the paper concludes that Islam can be seen as an oppositional force that has consistently been engaged in carving out a niche for itself, shaping the political discourse in the process.
